‘There is much to be inspired by’: Nadia Joseph attends Soweto Uprising memorial at Max Roach Park in photos

Nadia Joseph, whose father was one of 156 activists charged with treason in apartheid South Africa, was the guest speaker as around 15 locals gathered at the First Child memorial …

Jun 18, 2026 - 07:34

‘There is much to be inspired by’: Nadia Joseph attends Soweto Uprising memorial at Max Roach Park in photos

Nadia Joseph, whose father was one of 156 activists charged with treason in apartheid South Africa, was the guest speaker as around 15 locals gathered at the First Child memorial in Max Roach Park on Wednesday to mark the 50th anniversary of the Soweto Uprising.

The First Child, a sculpture by Raymond Watson on the south corner of the park by Brixton Road, was unveiled in 1998 by South Africa’s Deputy High Commissioner Happy Mahlangu.

It commemorates the 116 children killed on 16th June 1976, when an estimated 20,000 students took to the streets of Soweto to protest the imposition of Afrikaans as the language of instruction in Black schools.

Police opened fire on the protest and by the end of the day, 176 people had been killed, with 575 deaths from violence throughout South Africa by the end of February 1977.

The massacre became a turning point in the struggle against apartheid.

Lambeth declared itself an anti-apartheid borough in the 1980s – a charter that still hangs in the Mayor’s parlour – and Nelson Mandela visited Brixton in 1996 after his release, greeted by thousands on the streets of the borough.

*[Nadia Joseph (right) at Max Roach Park, Brixton 16.06.26]*

The name Soweto, is derived from South Western Townships and this week, on the 50th Anniversary of the uprising, Joseph a Researcher and Content Lead for the Liliesleaf Trust UK, drew a direct line from the township to the present.

She told the gathering that 1976 was also the year when the police were extremely heavy-handed in their treatment of young Black people at the Notting Hill Carnival. She said. “I was nine years old and at the carnival when scuffles broke out. These were frightening times,” before going on to say:

“There is much to be inspired by in the history of the fight against apartheid.

We now face yet more threats from racism in so many parts of the world.

We need to continue to work together in our communities to end division, create change and build unity.”

– Nadia Joseph.

*[Nadia Joseph speaking on the British Anti-apartheid Movement, 2023]*

Joseph also noted that 2026 also marks 70 years since the start of the 1956 Treason Trial in South Africa, when 156 activists of all backgrounds – including her father Paul – were charged simply for peacefully demanding an end to apartheid.

Adofo Ashanti, who marks the anniversary at the memorial every year, burnt incense and cleaned the plaque, calling for overhanging trees to be cut back to give the statue the prominence it deserves.

Community activist Elisabete Correia (right) told Brixton Buzz that “those lives were not lost in vain they deserve to be remembered, honoured and held in our collective memory.”

Dirg Aaab-Richards (above left) from the Pan-Afrikan Society Community Forum was also among those paying respects.

Michelle Killington (right) of the Friends of Max Roach Park called for an annual weekend celebration and better signage explaining the history behind the statue.

Newly elected Green councillor Patience Clague (above left) also attended and has expressed interest in working with the Friends group.

Sally McKenna of Lambeth TUC who organised the event told Brixton Buzz:

The Soweto uprising was a pivotal moment in South African history. Hundreds of children were killed. As it was the fiftieth anniversary it felt very important to honour their memory.

Mandela stated ‘All shall be afforded dignity’.

We in Brixton reject racism. We must resist the normalisation of language which ‘others’ people. No human is illegal.